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Blake wrote:
<blockquote cite="midop.su3mrhylzb486t@wynorski" type="cite">Ruby is
not as "pure" as Smalltalk. I'm far from an expert, but Ruby strikes
me as a language made by someone who said, "Wow, Smalltalk is cool. So
simple. Look, even loops and branches are done with objects. Ew. Let's
make a Smalltalk where the loops and branches are done the usual way.
Also, let's drop the image concept."
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I think the image concept could be improved on, but as far as making
traditional loops you add both the complexity and rob yourself of a
new way of thinking, which is really where Smalltalk excels.
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As for the ascendancy of C# and Java over Smalltalk, this was entirely
commercial (and to a degree, condescending). Someone willing to pour a
few billion into Smalltalk could easily make it a competitor against
those langauges. I know Sun dissected Smalltalk pretty thoroughly
prior to inventing Java, but why not make it look like C++ so as not
to threaten "the masses"? Same with C# which is, in fact, Delphi in
C-style dressing.
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They could've used Smalltalk. Hell, they could've used the P-code
system. But Sun and MS wanted control. For better or worse.
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Perhaps more interesting, and the reason I keep coming back to
Smalltalk, is that what was envisioned for it in the beginning still
hasn't been reached. Computer languages rise and fall with the
ephemeralities of the business world, and Smalltalk chugs along....
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</blockquote>
ephemeralities <br>
<br>
<font size="-1">the property of lasting for a very short time<br>
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;-)<br>
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